Red Sox prospects who could be dealt at MLB trade deadline
Do the Boston Red Sox have any trade bait? Here are some valuable chips that could be dealt as we approach the MLB trade deadline.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen! The Boston Red Sox came in to this season with such potential and expectations that even the mighty Casey at the Bat seems like an overachiever, but now could possibly be looking inside the organization for trade bait.
If you remember that classic baseball poem, you know that what seemed like the entirety of the Mudville season hung on the mighty Casey doing his usual and coming through with a home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, with two outs and two runners on base. The pressure, much like the Red Sox, was great, and Casey did not come through.
Now we are at the point in the season when the managerial firing rumors begin to fly. The team has under-performed based on their expectations coming in to the season. This is not an uncommon occurrence in professional sports, but it always goes in steps. First the manager gets the axe, then the trades start happening.
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What we will look at today are the top prospects that the team could dangle out there in the form of bait to help turn the tide of the season. For the purposes here, we will define “prospect” as a player who has played less than 100 games at the major league level.
Rafael Devers is a beast hitting from the left side of the plate. At only 20 years old, he has lots of time, barring injuries of course, to be an above-average hitter for the Red Sox organization. In the 43 games he has played so far this year for AA Portland Sea Dogs, he has smashed eight home runs, 10 doubles, and driven in 27, all while posting a .286 batting average. The only downside to his numbers so far are the 33 strikeouts compared to 16 walks. He needs to work on his patience at the plate, but overall is some good trade bait.
Although Devers seems to be the heir apparent at the hot corner, the Red Sox have some flexibility with the position. Sitting behind Devers are prospects Bobby Dalbec and Michael Chavis, who are both solid third basemen. The trade possibilities for Devers would be a quality prospect to begin the post-Dustin Pedroia era. Understandably, Red Sox fans don’t want to think about life without Pedroia, but the 33 year-old isn’t getting any younger, and the team needs to begin preparing this successor.
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- Predicting top Red Sox outfield prospect Ceddanne Rafaela’s timeline to the majors
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- Red Sox risk repeating rookie mistake with Eric Hosmer release
- Red Sox invited group of players you’ve probably never heard of to Spring Training
- Jeter Downs’ official departure will continue to haunt Red Sox
Our first pitching prospect that jumps onto the list is left-handed pitcher Brian Johnson. Johnson has pitched two games in the majors this year, and left them with a 2.57 ERA. Although he struck out 14, and only walked three batters, he did give up two home runs in 14 innings pitched. In the minors this year, he gave up two home runs in 44.2 innings pitched.
With somewhat of a log jam in the starting rotation with the return of David Price off the disabled list, and the off-season acquisition of Chris Sale, now would be the time to strike a trade with Johnson involved. Johnson would be another player that could be traded, much like Devers, for a future Pedroia replacement.
Our final prospect that would make trade sense for our Red Sox is Josh Tobias. Tobias is 24 years old and doesn’t really have any numbers that really pop except for his .293 batting average through 23 games for AA Portland.
Tobias would need to be packaged with another body to get a high quality major league talent. Replacing Pedroia has been mentioned more than once, but that is not because of any decline in talent, or excessive injury history. It is solely based on the fact that the time is coming and it is always better to be proactive than reactive.
With the team finally getting the key players healthy, now is the perfect time to use what the team has to prepare for the future of the team. The Red Sox have a great, young team. The oldest players in the active rotation are Pedroia and Hanley Ramirez, both of whom are 33 years old.
Next: Boston Red Sox: Prospect Watch
The future of the Red Sox is bright. They have the right mix, and the right attitude. They have the minor league system right where it needs to be. The few minor adjustments noted above, will set the team up to be a team with long-term success that should be able to avoid the down seasons that seem to plague them after the seasons of success.